A message from a PT

       I have had the pleasure  of  knowing Stacey Menz since  fall  2011.    For those of  you who do not know  Stacey is a PT  based   in the same town  that I   grew up  in.  I  wish I had her for  PT when I was younger  because she is really good.  Stacey works  at  Starfish Therapies. I asked her  to  write a post about  CP  and she did  so without further ado here  is the post on  CP

 this  little  guy  will be  the star of a video at the end of the post 

Every person with cerebral palsy looks differently not just in terms of their physical appearance (just like any other person) but also in terms of what they can do really easily and what they have a really hard time doing. This is because it depends on the area of the brain that was affected. Each area controls different parts of the body so it would make sense that an injury in one area of the brain will have a different affect than an injury in a different area of the brain. Despite these differences there are similarities that are important to consider when assisting a person with cerebral palsy to achieve their goals in life, whatever those goals may be.

 Me as a middle schooler with   book gal in   the backround

The similarity I am going to chat about is that for a person with cerebral palsy to learn a new skill whether it is how to walk, how to talk, how to write, etc, it takes a lot of practice. In this way it is no different than someone who is learning how to play the piano or to shoot a basketball or write cursive. All new skills take practice and repetition until they become more second nature. With new skills, each piece of the skill requires conscious thought. Remember the first time you learned to drive a car. You had two hands on the steering wheel, you were sitting upright and barely dared to breath. The radio wasn’t on because it might distract you, and the person who was in the passenger seat wasn’t allowed to so much as whisper. It took all your thought and concentration to move the car out of the driveway and down the road. Now, after countless hours and miles of practice think about all the things you do in the car. I’m sure all of us have at some point and time driven somewhere, parked and thought ‘how did I get here.’ Driving has become automatic and we don’t have to think about every little nuance anymore, unless the conditions change and then we are on higher alert.

 My  mom  me and book gal I did PT when I was this small

This is how learning every movement is for a person with cerebral palsy. Each motion or activity requires constant thought. Nothing is automatic. So not only is going about the day physically exhausting for a person with cerebral palsy because of the extra energy they have to expend to create movement or speech, it can also be mentally exhausting if they have to consciously tell their brain to tell their body each motion and movement.


This is where the practice comes in. The more a person practices an activity the easier it has the potential to become. And, the more the activity is broken down into small pieces and each piece is mastered and then put back together as a whole, the easier the activity has the potential to become. I have seen this in many cases. I have a kiddo where we are working on walking without assistive devices. He is able to do it for short periods but he needs to think about each step and think about his balance after each step. He has a hard time shifting his weight onto one foot so he can lift the other and will often lean out to the side to make this easier, but that then makes keeping his balance harder. So we will take lots of time to practice shifting his weight to one side and then the other while keeping his head and trunk up straight. After we practice that piece he gets to practice walking a short distance and he finds it just a little bit easier to shift his weight, take a step and keep his head and trunk up so that he has an easier time keeping his balance.
Every time a skill is practiced it is reinforcing the pathway that sends the message from the brain to the muscles. The more this road is used, the more efficient it becomes which also helps skills to become more automatic.

I inspire greatness

The take-away message is that practice and repetition are good. But I also hope you understand how much effort goes into a person with cerebral palsy learning each new skill and movement. Not just the physical effort, but the mental effort. I am amazed every day by the determination and will of the people I work with. They inspire me to work harder. I hope they inspire you.

Raiseing a disabled child is sometimes easier than rasing a adverage child

My mom   my sisters and  me spring 2005

1   I do not need a curfew.  I do not go out that much and if  I  do  its with my parents  so  they do not need  to stay up worrying  when I will be home  on weekends. 

2  There are a lot of people that have helped me  over the years. OT  Therapist PT ST they  have wondered though my life  helping me and  my parents. 

3 Most of the  things I do outside of  the home are  supervised  thus  they  do not have to worry.

4    Sometimes  my sisters tend to think that they  know everything.  I know  I  don't.

 

5 I have never been  to  a house party therefore  I  have never   been around  drugs  

 6 I have  yet to have a boyfriend  so    my dad does not have to worry.

 

 Got  any other ideas? I  want to hear  them  comment below 

Great video of me

Make a video - it's fun, easy and free!
www.onetruemedia.com

Yesterday

  So  yesterday I   got to watch the  Muppet  movie  via  Apple TV.


 I really  liked it.  It is about a  muppet who was raised in a human family  thus  he has a hard time  fittining  in  he is  really short. Then  he   watches the Muppet show  on  TV and  he  does not   feel so  alone.  It leads him ....    What you think I would  ruin the movie for  you..




 Anyway   one  of my  favorite  songs that Kermit,  you know  the frog, sings  is  It's not that easy being green.  I  remember watching   the song on Sesame Street  back when I was younger and liking the song but not understanding.  Now   17 years  later  I do  understand its  not that easy to be  different. It's really hard when society  tells  you that you are not wroth  the same because of   stroke  before birth.   Since  green  is the CP  color.   I feel like  Kermit is sining this song  especially  for  kids with  CP even though it applies to  all disabilities. 

TODAY IS

 



Today  is CP Awareness day so if u could tell people about CP I would appreciate. CP is a physical disability that results from a lack of oxygen. I have lived with it for 20 years. CP is the reason why I have trouble talking and running long distances, it is the reason that i can not do my own hair at 20. I just keep trying to do the best I can. Never underestimate a person with CP. Just because A person does not talk clearly or can talk at all does not mean that they have a intellectual disability.  To learn more about what it is like to have CP watch  below 

CP sports camp

  This is cool   I  wish   there was something  like that around here





Sunday is Special so stick  around

Seth's Story part three

           Here is part  one , 

here is  part   two 

 Now for the final chapter 

For every Seth that is saved, there are so many more kids, just like him, waiting in an orphanage. 100,000 in Ukraine alone. Somewhere between the ages of 4 and 6, depending on what part of the country they live in, they will be transferred to a “special needs internaut”… a mental institution. A facility housing ages 4-65. They will remain there the rest of their lives. Those with any sort of special need will never receive an education, no job training, no life skills training. They will sit and stare at the walls, slowly losing their minds, their bodies deteriorating and becoming weak, until they finally give up and die. That is hard to read. It seems sensational. In our day and age, surely not, right. But it’s true. It exists. I’ve been there. I’ve seen a child’s reality. Every time a child is adopted, that child is given hope, health care, family, love and an education. Children who were deemed “uneducable” In Ukraine are brought home, given an education, go on to high school, college, get married and have children. All because someone stepped out in faith and took a chance for a child.

Change is happening in Ukraine, but like all change, it comes slowly. There are a few schools opening up for children with special needs. But they are few and far between in comparison to the demand. Every time a child is adopted, a statement is made that these kids have value, are worth it, and deserve everything we go through to get them here. Slowly, the wheels of change turn.

When I think of Seth and where he’d be if we hadn’t walked through those doors, I think back to the line of wheelchairs, of his mind losing its grip. I think of him sitting there for 59 more years. Doing nothing. Sitting, moaning, rocking. When I think of Seth’s future, I see him starting school, learning to read, learning to walk, being on a high school swim team, maybe being a weight lifter. I see him studying hard, because he knows the value of what he’s been given. I see him being a cub scout, a boy scout, earning his Eagle, going on to college and being an engineer some day. With his captivating laugh and coy smile, I’m sure he will get married and have children. All of this can be his, despite his CP, with his CP, because of his CP. His cerebral palsy shaped him. Without it, he wouldn’t have spent his first six years where he did. He might not have the determination and drive he does. He certainly wouldn’t be in our family. We owe a lot to his CP. His CP put him where he is now… in our family.


 Thanks for sharing Laura.  I have enjoyed   reading about Seth's incredible journy for more information please vist   Laura's blog.